It may feel like stream of warm liquid that makes your underwear and possibly even your pants wet. But more likely is that it will be a slow and steady trickle of fluid. Amniotic fluid is a pale, straw-colored fluid. Your water breaking may be accompanied by bloody show. You might also lose your mucus plug , which looks like you probably imagine: a glob of mucus.
Though many pregnant women leak urine, especially in the third trimester , a sniff will probably clue you in. If the fluid is yellowish and smells of ammonia, it's probably urine. Don't worry too much about your water breaking when you're on a checkout line: Only about 1 in 10 women experience the rupture of the amniotic sac before they go into labor.
So chances are good that you'll have plenty of warning or you'll already be in the hospital when your water breaks. And lots of women require the artificial rupture of the membranes by their practitioner. Most women whose membranes rupture before labor begins can expect to feel the first contractions within 12 hours of that initial trickle, while others can expect them to start within 24 hours.
In the meantime, you won't run out of amniotic fluid — your body continues to produce it right up until delivery. For some moms, however, labor takes a little longer to get going. Your health care provider has probably given you a set of instructions to follow when your water breaks. What triggers this?
You can smile… soon your baby will be in your arms! This is called premature rupture of membranes PROM and occurs in only about 8 to 10 percent of pregnancies. Some of the possible causes include:. It occurs in about 3 percent of all pregnancies in the United States. A small amount of fluid probably means that the wetness is vaginal discharge or urine no need to feel embarrassed — a little urine leakage is a normal part of pregnancy.
But hold on, as there is a chance it could also be amniotic fluid. The amount of runaway fluid when your water breaks depends on a few things:.
Depending on these factors you may experience a trickle of amniotic fluid instead of what movies have you expecting — a popping sensation and a gush of liquid. See a yellowish color? Then you can probably put the wetness on your underwear down to urinary incontinence. Does it appear clear to white and bit creamy? But what if the color you see is clear or much paler than urine and completely liquid? Check with your OB or midwife if you are still not sure.
A green or green-yellow color means that your amniotic fluid has been colored by meconium. They may also administer other medications. The water breaks when the amniotic sac ruptures. The fetus is inside this sac and surrounded by the fluid, which protects them from injury.
It is necessary for the sac to rupture so that the baby can be born. Medical professionals may sometimes artificially break the sac if it does not break naturally.
Experts do not fully understand how the water breaks, but it may have something to do with brain signals from the fetus. Occasionally, it can break when the fetus moves into the pelvis in preparation for labor and their head puts pressure on the membranes. Sometimes, contractions can begin hours after the membranes rupture.
If contractions do not begin within a certain timeframe, however — usually 24 hours — a healthcare provider may induce labor to reduce infection risk. Once the water breaks, it is vital to follow the instructions of the doctor or midwife.
If a woman is unsure of what to do, they should contact their healthcare provider or go to their labor and delivery unit. Women should take care to avoid infection during this time. They should use a pantyliner or pad to soak up the amniotic fluid, and they should avoid the use of tampons.
It is also important to wipe carefully from front to back after using the bathroom and to avoid sexual intercourse after the water breaks. Women should call their doctor immediately or go straight to the hospital or delivery unit if the membranes rupture and:. If the water does not break during labor, a doctor or midwife may artificially break the sac using a technique called an amniotomy. An amniotomy involves inserting a thin, plastic hook through the cervix to break the amniotic sac, allowing the fluids to exit.
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